to relieve / exonerate
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to relieve
To take work, worries, or a burden off someone, so that the person is less burdened and has an easier time.
Ein Praktikant soll die Abteilung bei der täglichen Arbeit entlasten.
An intern is supposed to relieve the department in its daily work.
'Entlasten' (to relieve / exonerate) is an inseparable verb because it begins with the prefix 'ent-'. The prefix remains firmly attached to the verb in all sentence forms.
Die neue Straße entlastet die Innenstadt vom Verkehr.
The new road relieves the city center of traffic.
The word consists of the prefix 'ent-' (to take away) and the noun 'die Last' (the burden/load). So 'entlasten' literally means to take a burden away from someone or something.
Die Spülmaschine entlastet mich sehr im Haushalt.
The dishwasher relieves me a lot in the household.
In the context of work and stress, the preposition 'bei' (+ dative) is often used to name the task. Adverbs such as 'finanziell' (financially) or 'emotional' (emotionally) are also common.
Ein Babysitter kann junge Eltern enorm entlasten.
A babysitter can greatly relieve young parents.
In legal usage, 'entlasten' (to exonerate) means to prove a person's innocence. It is often used with words such as 'Angeklagter' (defendant), 'Zeuge' (witness), or 'Beweis' (evidence).
Das Alibi konnte den Verdächtigen vollständig entlasten.
The alibi was able to completely exonerate the suspect.
to support
'unterstützen' and 'entlasten' can both mean that someone receives help. 'unterstützen' is more general: you help a person with a task, with money, or with practical work. 'entlasten' says more specifically that someone has less work, worry, or pressure because something is taken off their hands. Learners may confuse the words because support often relieves someone. If you only want to say that someone is helping, use 'unterstützen'. If it is important that a burden is reduced, 'entlasten' fits better.
Am Wochenende entlastet sie ihren Mann, weil er wegen der Arbeit sehr müde ist.
On weekends, she relieves her husband because he is very tired from work.
Du unterstützt deine Eltern, wenn du regelmäßig einkaufen gehst.
You support your parents when you regularly do the shopping.